Yokohama's Chinatown — known in Japanese as Chukagai — is the largest in Japan and one of the biggest in the world, with more than 600 restaurants and shops packed into a dense grid of colourful streets. The community dates to the mid-nineteenth century, when Chinese merchants settled near the newly opened port, and it has been a fixture of the city's identity ever since. The main gate, Zenrinkoku-mon, is an unmistakeable landmark draped in red and gold.
Dim sum is the thing to eat here — the teahouses are busiest on weekend mornings, when families come for trolley service. The streets are equally lively in the evenings, with Peking duck, Shanghainese xiaolongbao, and Cantonese roast meats all competing for attention. Beyond restaurants, you will find shops selling Chinese teas, ceramics, herbal medicines, and all manner of souvenir kitsch.
The neighbourhood is at its most spectacular during Chinese New Year (late January or February), when dragon dances and fireworks fill the streets for several days. Even on an ordinary afternoon it is one of the most atmospheric corners of Yokohama.